Hello and Happy Friday! 
Who is ready for the weekend? I sure am! We had a crazy week over here. Jimmy has been working a ton lately, which I know is stressful for him. Us girls miss him while he puts in extra hours, but at the same time I am so thankful he has work! It was almost a year ago that he was laid off due to COVID, so we never take busyness for granted.
Niva randomly bit Sadie yesterday. Guys, yesterday was a year and a day since Mavis bit Sadie. I can’t make this stuff up. I cried and cried. I still don’t know what happened. I was in the other room and Sadie and Niva were in the living room and suddenly Sadie was sobbing and clutching her arm and sure enough, she had a bite mark.
I’m not sure if she was bothering Niva or if they were just playing, but ugh. I just feel so bad all around. Thankfully the bite wasn’t bad, but Sadie was really upset afterwards (and so was I 😢).
Sadie was back to making messes within a few hours!
After having her bloodwork done recently, the results showed that things are a bit off with Sadie. Her doctor referred us to a gastroenterologist at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. We had an appointment and the doctor did an exam and without going into too much detail, something is up so she needs to have an upper and lower scope done, plus more testing.
I don’t even want to think about little Sader Tot under anesthesia. I know she will be fine and we’ll get to the bottom of this, but it’s just sad thinking of more testing and procedures. I am so thankful for healthcare and amazing doctors.
We’ll get our silly little Sadie back to feeling normal again! She has been loving this adorable fishing game lately. Also, the random flashcard in the background was for homeschool that day. We learned about nurses!
Okay, enough of me being a Debby downer over here! We had our monthly family night last night and it was lovely! We decided to do a family gift exchange and split up to shop for little gifts for each other. Sadie and I bought for Jimmy and the pets and he bought for us girls.
Daddy definitely delivered… Sadie got a Paw Patrol toy and she has not stopped playing with it since she opened it. In fact, we (stupidly) let her keep it in her room overnight and she woke up at 5:30 this morning to play with it, LOL.
My sister and I were talking about Paw Patrol recently and she said she thinks it’s a cult. Neither of our daughters really watch the show (we don’t have cable) but are somehow totally obsessed with all things Paw Patrol?!
We did homeschool today and I drew Skye for art class and Sadie’s mind was blown. She wanted me to draw every. single. character. 😂
Other stuff of note:
- Obsessed with this peanut butter.
- We found out my brother and sister-in-law are having a baby girl in May!
- Still reading Ruth in the Bible and loving studying it.
- Excited to watch Battle Bots tonight with Jimmy 🤓
- Our lil picky eater loves these, but only the chocolate ones 😂
That’s pretty much life lately at the Zottola Zoo. Some hard stuff, mixed with blessings, along with great stuff. God is good!
Living My Full Life 
I’ll be praying for Sadie – but I know everything will work out, and you’ll finally have peace of mind as to what is going on!
Your family night sounds so cute with the little gift idea! Lots of babies on the way in your family as well, which is always a joy!
Thank you so much for praying for Sadie, Rachel! That means the world to us!
The gift exchange was a blast! I got chocolate so I was one happy girl haha. It was Lindt and made me think of you since you’re a chocolate lover 🙂
We are so pumped for all the babies joining the family in the next few months!
Oh yes, I love chocolate! Lindt is delicious! And I saw the peanut butter you are loving right now – you always find something unique. I will have to find it and try it!
I hope you love it if you give it a try!! It’s fantastic 🙂
Praying for our little baby girl!
She is still having a blast!
Love 💕 you girls so much!
Dad
Thank you so much!! She really is still having a blast 🙂 Love you! ❤
It sounds like a stressful week! The Niva/Sadie incident must have been distressing for all of you, as well as the medical tests that Sadie needs. I hope this week is calmer for you all.
The family night sounds lovely! How funny that Sadie and your sister’s daughter both love Paw Patrol. It reminds me of my nieces — they aren’t allowed to watch much TV but even so, they’ve developed a similar obsession with Peppa Pig.
My life lately has been busy but mostly good. There have been some ongoing stresses in my family and last week I was feeling quite overwhelmed and anxious. But I keep trying to remind myself that most of the things I worry about are outside my control anyway. This verse from Matthew 6:34 is very apt for me! “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Thank you so much, Grace! So far this week has been calmer! Whew!
So funny about your nieces with Peppa Pig! I think Sadie has seen that a time or two and definitely liked it because every time she sees a Peppa Pig toy or shirt in a store she ways “Piggy!” haha.
I’m so sorry you’ve had some stress with your family. It’s no fun to feel overwhelmed and anxious 😢 but you’re right to remind yourself (and I needed that reminder today, too–so thank you!) that most of the things we worry about are beyond our control!
Amen to the verse in Matthew! Thank you so, so much for sharing! ❤
So stressful! I’m so sorry. It is so so so hard to know your child is going to go under anesthesia. Both of mine have had to (once for Owen and twice for Ava) and handing them over to those providers and watching them walk away with my babies are among the hardest things I’ve done as a parent. But like you said – it will be okay and it is in the interest of helping your child feel better. In hindsight it would have been so much harder to let Ava’s hip stay out of place or let Owen’s issue continue unaddressed (his is related to something more private so I don’t want to put too much detail here). Make sure you trust the providers and know that a lot of people are praying for Sadie and your family. All the best to all of you!
Thank you, Amy! It really is so hard to trust the doctors over her with anesthesia. I can’t imagine how tough it was to go through it three times. But yeah, wanting her to get better is at the heart of the matter so if that’s what we have to do then so be it! ❤
Oh Allie!! I am so sorry that I have been so behind on reading blog posts. All of this stuff with Sadie is so scary. I’m so glad that you have access to such good medical care and that you are going to be able to figure out what is going on with your sweet Sadie! ❤
Aww, thank you Rach!! ❤
OH! And I meant to comment on the Sadie/Niva thing as well. Friend, my heart goes out to you. I know how hard last year was with Mavis so I can only imagine the range of emotions you must have experienced that day! I’m so glad the bite wasn’t more serious!
You’re so right… it was a range of emotions that day! Whew. Hopefully it doesn’t happen again because I don’t think my heart can take it, lol!